Team-11 asks for PDI to be disqualified

Team-11 asks for PDI to be disqualified

JAKARTA (JP): Team Eleven, the verification committee tasked
with deciding the eligibility of poll contestants, will recommend
that the Indonesian Democratic Party (PDI) be disqualified from
participating in the June 7 general elections.

The recommendation is to be delivered in an official letter to
Minister of Home Affairs Syarwan Hamid urging that the Supreme
Court disqualifies the party for both legal and political
reasons.

Team member Kastorius Sinaga told The Jakarta Post here Friday
that the 11-member team, led by Muslim intellectual Nucholish
Madjid, that the decision was taken after mulling over the
objections presented by the Public Defenders of Indonesian
Democracy (TPDI) against the troubled PDI led by Budi Hardjono.

"We want only 'clean parties' to contest the elections," he
argued.

Nevertheless Kastorius maintained that Team Eleven would still
comply with the legal procedures of registering the party as an
electoral contestant and process its registration in accordance
with the law.

Kastorius said the team has received a bundle of lawsuits
filed by the Indonesian Democratic Party for Struggle (PDI
Perjuangan) against the PDI.

"PDI is still facing lawsuits in line with the violent take-
over of the Jl. Diponegoro PDI Headquarters in July 27, 1996 and
its violent congress in Palu, Central Sulawesi, last year," he
said.

TPDI chaired by R.O. Tambunan, lodged with the team on
Wednesday its objections to PDI being allowed to take part in the
elections since the party was still facing lawsuits in many
district courts across the country.

Andi Andojo Sutjipto, another team member, acknowledged that
the law on general elections did not regulate troubled political
parties but his team had political and legal reasons for making
the recommendation.

"Besides facing lawsuits, the PDI still has political troubles
with PDI Perjuangan and people know exactly who runs the former,"
he said.

The PDI was split into two camps after the government-backed
1996 Medan Congress which ousted chairperson Megawati
Soekarnoputri and elected Soerjadi as her replacement.

Megawati and her supporters refused to recognize the congress
and filed actions against Soerjadi and a number of government
officials who were accused of engineering the congress.

Soerjadi was then succeeded by Budi Hardjono during a congress
in Palu lasy year.

While many suits have been either rejected or defeated,
several are still pending in court.

Team Eleven has been assigned the task of administratively
filtering out political parties eligible to contest the general
election.

The twelve political parties which have passed through the
first registration stage at the Ministry of Justice and are now
being studied by Team Eleven are: Republic Party, Party for the
Improvement of the People's Mind, PDI Perjuangan, Indonesian
Islamic Congregation Party, Justice Party, Party for Indonesian
People's Struggle, National Amor and Democracy Party, National
Awakening Party, National Democratic Party, Justice and Union
Party, MKGR Party and Crescent Star Party. (rms)